My students loved playing this game last year. This is a great activity to do at the beginning of the year. Print the memory cards on card stock, develop wallets of your students, glue the pictures onto the cards and laminate.

Barbara Jolie is a freelance writer. She mostly writes about trends in online education for onlineclasses.org. I was thrilled when Barbara asked to write some content for my blog. Barbara's article reminds me of the endless hours that I spent reading with my boys. Thanks Barbara for taking the time to write about such an important topic for our youngest learners.

Your Children and Reading: The Essentials

The advice of reading to your children has become so widespread that it is considered cliché. Everyone knows the importance of reading to their children, yet this great piece of advice seems to not be practiced as much as it is preached. No matter how busy your schedule is, it is absolutely vital that you read to your children every day.

When Should I Start Reading?

Many parents assume their child must be a certain age before they reap the benefits hearing stories aloud. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), it is strongly recommended to "read to children every day, starting after they are first born." Even though they won't understand what you're reading, hearing language will stimulate development in their brains, allow them to learn language more easily and quickly, and develop a closer emotional relationship between parent and child.

When reading to an infant, it does not matter what you read. Although, it is preferable that parents and immediate family members read to the infant rather than nannies as it strengthens relationships. But in terms of content, there's very little difference between reading a children's story and reading the sports section or James Joyce.

Once your child is old enough to understand the stories you read, start taking time to ask questions about the material. Asking anything from "what do you think will happen next" or "which is your favorite character" will help improve your child's comprehension of language and critical thinking.

When Are the Best Times to Read?

Obviously, you want to read to your child when they are calm yet alert. Beyond that, read whenever you have the chance; be creative. You aren't limited to only reading before bedtime. Read while waiting in line for the bus or waiting to see a pediatrician. Read at a restaurant. If you're watching TV, consider turning it off and reading aloud instead.

Even when your child is old enough to read to his or herself, they will still benefit greatly if you keep reading to them. Of course, encourage them to read aloud to you (and others) as well. Most importantly, make sure they are comfortable and not pressured into reading. It should be a pleasurable experience, and if it isn't, it could turn them off of reading for the rest of their lives.

The Don'ts of Reading

While any reading to your child should be beneficial, there are some guidelines you should follow to ensure you are raising a child who will love reading. First and foremost, be sure that you are reading things that you enjoy to your children. If do not sound like you're having fun when reading, your child may not think that reading is fun and steer away from the activity altogether.

Also, once your child is able to understand basic language, try to read material that is appropriate for their age and level of comprehension. Reading books that a child will have no hope of understanding is just as dangerous if not even more dangerous than reading material that you and the child do not enjoy.

Lastly, many parents operate under the belief that it is better to teach their children letters first, then words, then stories. While these fundamentals are important to be taught and established at some point in early childhood, it's much more important to simply read to your children every day and keep them involved in the material being read. This allows letters and words to come naturally into a child's world.

By-line:

This guest post is contributed byBarbara Jolie, who writes foronline classes. She welcomes your comments at her email Id: barbara.jolie876@gmail.com.